When the first sound I hear on my approach to the Little Orme is that of a Raven gronking, I take it as an omen that this is going to be a good walk! And so it was today – the old Raven perched high on the edge of the cliff, proclaiming his territorial rights, his distinctive call echoing off the surrounding rock. As yet there were no signs of Fulmars having returned to begin claiming nesting spots on the cliff below him. Notoriously noisy, they too would have been heard before being seen for sure.

Ears being more effective than eyes on this bright winter afternoon, I heard birdsong emanating from a small nearby tree. I didn’t recognise the song at first and with sun shining directly into my eyes, it took a couple of minutes for me to recognise that the singer was a Great tit. I edged slowly towards him, circling to try to reach a point where the sun was less blinding, expecting him to spot me and take off any second, but he was confident and intent on his purpose and chose to ignore me. I was delighted, I don’t recall ever being this close to a singing Great tit before and was impressed by his tuneful renderings.

He was indeed handsome and as the test of a male Great tit’s virility is displayed in the strength of the black markings that run from his throat to his nether regions, this one looks like he’d be quite a catch.

The ground here was frosted and in shaded places the grass was crunchy underfoot, but a pair of blackbirds, feathers fluffed out against the cold had found a more insulated mossy spot and were out hunting worms. I wasn’t sure if the female was deliberately collecting nesting material or if I’d disturbed her whilst probing and the grass had stuck to her bill.

Close by a Robin was singing quietly, almost to itself as it perched low and spied, head cocked, for insect movements on the ground below.

Reaching the cliff edge which overlooks Penrhyn Bay, all I spied was a distant single cormorant. (Well, I assumed it was a cormorant, but a sharp-eyed friend pointed out it was actually a Shag – so really happy about that as I see far fewer of them.)

A closer look shows the Shag has a narrow bill and a steeper forehead than a Cormorant and also lacks the white cheeks patches of the latter. A lesson learned, I will look closer in the future and not make assumptions!

Sitting atop the rocky mound that forms one edge of Angel Bay were a pair of large black birds. One had his back to me, looking out to sea – Ravens, surely? As I approached they flew down almost to the base of the rock.

Feathers gleaming with shades of purple and green they are magnificent birds, but you wouldn’t want to be on the receiving end of that enormous dagger-like bill.

As well as local folk, people come here from miles around in the hope of a sighting of the Grey Seals that have claimed Angel Bay as their own. Today I was one of a small crowd of spectators that were given a real treat; there must have been at least 40 of them ranged along the tide-line the whole length of the little cove.

Perfectly camouflaged to blend with the rocks and pebbles here, it takes a few minutes to get your eye in and work out which shapes are animal and which mineral. I make a total of 20 in the image below.

At first glance there didn’t seem to be much activity other than sleeping going on, but sounds arising and a closer look reveals that here and there things were not entirely tranquil.

Some see rocks as a sun-warmed resting place

while to others they are just obstacles to be overcome; going over the top must be easier than getting someone to move.

These two took to the water, they could be a male and a female as one appears smaller than the other.

They started off peacefully enough,

but things soon started to get a bit rough

and developed into what appeared to be a serious display of aggression or power assertion of some kind. ( I wasn’t entirely off-track here, but it has been pointed out that this was quite likely mating behaviour. I thought that mating happened sooner after the birth of the pups.)

Their interaction was quickly dissipated though when several more seals lumbered from the shore, showing a surprising turn of speed, and entered the water with much deliberate splashing.

Then sped off with purpose, keeping their heads above the water

to check out two kayakers that had paddled into the bay. The guys in the boats must have been thrilled to have had a close encounter with at least eight curious seals.

Back on the shore another pair having a bit of argy-bargy

this time more vocal than physical.

And that is where I left them to get on with their day while I got moving to warm up, with one quick last look over the edge of the cliff from the other side of the bay.

On the far side of the bay I scanned the cliff for any signs that the Ravens may be re-using the nest site that has been occupied for years. There was nothing I could see, but there were plenty of pairs of Jackdaws that seem to have already claimed or reclaimed holes and ledges on the cliff wall. Jackdaws are so numerous here that a black bird of a certain size usually registers subconsciously as such, but again it was hearing different sounds called by a small group of four black birds flying up that alerted me to the presence of the far less common Chough.

More wary than the resident Jackdaws, the presence of Chough, probably visiting from the Great Orme that forms the other side of Llandudno Bay, always takes me by surprise and that is my excuse for failing to get a decent photograph! That and the fact they soon spotted me standing out in the open pointing a long lens at them, so they took off and disappeared over the cliff edge. I have seen and photographed the pair below feeding here before, quite distinctive with all their leg bling, but the one above has none yet. Is that because it’s a young one I wonder? Please tell me if you know.

I couldn’t leave this lower level of the reserve without a nod to a Jackdaw, whose home this really is, so snatched this just before a dog followed by its owner sent him off too.

Yes, this is definitely corvid central – rooks are nearby too. Chough are the star turns of course, they are indeed gorgeous and as they are few in number a sighting is always a treat and a surprise; one of these days I’ll be ready for them! The west coast is probably still the best place to see them, especially the Pembs Coast Path.

Quite a few members of the crow family then Theresa! I was always pleased when I saw a chough on the cliffs around Aberystwyth, many years ago, especially as I was used to the birds of the Midlands and not the West Coast of Wales. Gorgeous birds, aren’t they?

Lovely walk and lovely post! Are there any guidelines re walking dogs on leash in an area with so many wild birds and animals? I guess any such guidelines would be ignored anyway. I do wish people wouldn’t let their dogs chase birds and animals. After all, we are visiting their area, and they have a hard enough time as it is!

Thank you. I completely agree with you; ‘dogs in Nature Reserves’ seems like an oxymoron to me, but I think local councils are under pressure when it comes to dog walking spaces, especially because they’re not allowed on most beaches.They are meant to be kept on leads here, but most local people that have been ‘coming here for years’ assume that as their dog is ‘well-behaved’, so rules don’t apply to them! Most resident birds seem used to humans and canines, others are up on the cliffs out of harms way and the seals are down below in the cove and don’t appear bothered by people standing looking down at them and even ignore dogs barking.

Yes indeed, we are indeed lucky to have all this so easily accessible to us. I enjoyed the whole of your experiences on the Wales Coast Path, especially interested on your impressions of this part of course. I thought you were very positive about it, even the less-loved parts! You can’t fault the nature though, it more than compensates for the eyesores we have created.

This is such a joyful lovely post Theresa, I felt as if I was with you on your walk. We saw Choughs for the first time in Wales last year and resolved to keep a note every day of our birds sightings in a notebook we’ve called 3 Choughs. I’ve also now seen Redwings in the small nature reserve in our village. Hopefully I shall get to hear a Great Tit sing too!

Thank you Julie, I’m happy that you enjoyed walking with me, I loved every minute of it! The sight and sounds of Choughs are wonderful aren’t they? As I mentioned, they pop over the bay to visit here to feed, but sightings involve a lot of being in the right place at the right time! I’ve had great sightings in the past when walking along the Pembrokeshire Coastal Path, but even better on Skomer island. If you’ve not visited there you must, you would love it! So pleased you’ve seen Redwings. Fingers crossed for a singing Great tit!

We were on the Pembrokeshire Coast Path when we saw the Choughs, on St David’s Peninsula. I’m hoping to go back to walk some more of the path, we did several circular routes. Skomer has been on my wish list for a while, hopefully a visit will be possible soon.

Wonderful to go on the walk with you. Amazing how the seals do look like large rocky pebbles from above. Wonder if once there were some serious land predators! Very handsome great tit. Haven’t seen ours for a while but they usually tap at the windows in the spring. Think there must be some kind of insect there or something?

Thank you, it was lovely to have your virtual company! I think the seals colouration does relate to the need for serious camouflage, I know the pups are born with white coats so they would once have blended into a snowy/icy environment, so there must have been bears or other large predators as you suggest. The great tit was a beauty wasn’t he? I was reading about them tapping on windows just the other day – some individuals see their own reflection in the glass and take it to be a rival so peck at it to see it off! Tits do also check the corners of frames for spiders hiding there.

What a fulfilling walk along the Little Orme. So much to capture that day. I have never seen such a small puffed out black bird or such small robins. Lovely photography, especially the Great tit — and all of the birds. You must cherish your walks.

Thank you Pat, it was indeed a fulfilling outing with so much to see and everything preparing for the arrival of the Spring. The birds we call Robins are completely different to yours aren’t they? Yours are more the size of our Blackbirds, which in turn are similar to your Grackles!

Thanks for that John, I did think the non-ringed Chough may have been a young one; so do families stay together through the winter? It did occur to me the seals may be mating, but the procedure looked and sounded quite fearsome so wasn’t sure! I also thought they’d done it by now as pups are quite well grown. I guess that means they’ll be leaving soon?

Lovely to hear from you Tony, I hope you are well and managing to get out plenty! Thanks for pointing out that my Cormorant was a Shag – I’m so used to seeing Cormorants here it didn’t even occur to me to look more closely, so I’m delighted and will correct the post and observe better in future! The Chough were a treat, but didn’t hang around for long.

It’s one of my favourite places to walk locally Vicky, it covers a range of habitats in a relatively small area and as well as the seals has a great diversity of birds and plants throughout the year. It also attracts a lot of people walking dogs, so I try to avoid weekends!